


Storytime

by Richie Rose (richtherose)



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: (or at least i'll try), F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gen, M/M, Multi, Roman and Virgil are kids, Single Parents, Slow Burn, Thomas is an elementary school teacher, patton was previously married and i came up with his wife so yeah
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-03
Updated: 2018-06-06
Packaged: 2019-05-17 19:06:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14837456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/richtherose/pseuds/Richie%20Rose
Summary: Patton is a single father, keeping a smile on his face for the world and his gloomy son. Logan is a recently divorced brainiac who can't understand his dramatic son. Virgil and Roman are two troubled kids that fight a lot, but really, just want a friend. Maybe the four can find a home in each other.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> obvious title: check  
> cliché summary: check  
> good story: ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

“Alright, kids, it’s Storytime!” 

Mr. Sanders got all of the kids to sit down so that he could spin them another tale. 

“Once upon a time, in a faraway land, there lived a brave knight…” he began. 

Immediately, Roman shot up from his seat, striking a dramatic and heroic pose. “That’s me! I’m a brave knight!” 

“Shut up…” Virgil said from a few feet away, annoyed. 

Roman scowled, “You shut up, buttface.” 

“Hey, hey, that’s not nice…” Mr. Sanders said warningly. 

“Very creative name,” Virgil said, his voice dripping with an astonishing amount of sarcasm for an 11-year-old.  

Roman suddenly flew at him, flailing his arm at the other boy. Thomas got up from his chair, breaking them up. Virgil was clutching his arm, hissing at Roman. 

“Alright, that’s enough. You’ve been fighting nearly every day since school started. I’m calling your parents,” Thomas said as he led them into his office. He turned back to the rest of the class. “Kids, just go back to playing until I’m done here.”

Virgil sulked in his chair, looking pointedly at the wall, although that was usual. Roman’s usual cheerful demeanor was replaced by anger and annoyance. Thomas sighed as he dialed the phone and waited for them to pick up. 

 

Patton was in the middle of feeding the cats in the shelter when his phone started ringing. He pulled it out, seeing Thomas’ name pop up. He looked around. 

“Hey, Talyn, could you finish this while I take a call? Virgil’s teacher is calling,” Patton asked his coworker. 

They nodded, coming to take over his job while he went outside so there wasn’t any howling and meowing in the background. 

“Hey-o Tommy-boy, how’s it going?” he answered cheerfully. 

“Hey Patton, sorry to bother you, but Virgil had a bit of a fight today with one of his classmates. Unfortunately, this isn’t a new occurrence, they’ve been fighting a lot since school started. I’ll have to ask you to come join me in a parent-teacher conference with Roman’s parents so we can work this out and hopefully come up with some sort of conclusion.” Thomas explained. 

“Oh, of course, I’ll come! Will it be when we pick the kids up?” Patton asked. 

“Yes, and thank you, I’ll see you then.” 

“See you then, bye!” 

Patton let himself one sigh before he plastered on his signature smile and went back inside. 

 

When Patton walked into the classroom, he found Thomas sitting next to a couple, who he assumed were Roman’s parents, while the kids were sulking across the room. He went to Virgil first, kneeling in front of him. 

“Hey Virge, I hear you got in a fight today. You know that’s not nice…” he scolded softly. 

Virgil looked away, ashamed. “I’m sorry, Dad…” 

“I’m not the one you need to apologize to,” Patton said softly, glancing at the other boy, who was staring at him in interest. 

“Sorry, Roman…” Virgil muttered. 

“Good. Now, I’m just gonna have a chat with the adults, and then we can go home, so just sit tight, kiddo!” 

Patton stood up and walked to the others, who were watching him with interest. Thomas smiled as Patton took his seat in front of the small desk. The couple nodded at him, and he smiled back. 

“Patton, this is Logan and Valerie. They are actually friends of mine as well, we all went to the same college,” Thomas explained. 

Patton grinned, “Well isn’t that just dandy! I’m actually Thomas’ neighbor, my name is Patton, great to meet you!” 

Valerie smiled at him, and Logan simply nodded again, looking a little bewildered. 

“It’s like I’m sitting in a room of clones,” Valerie joked, looking between the three of them. 

Patton looked at the other two, trying to see what she meant. 

“I mean, I suppose we have similar hairstyles…” Logan said slowly. 

“Yeah, I just don’t see it,” Thomas admitted. 

Valerie shook her head as if to say nevermind. 

“So, I’ll try to keep this meeting brief,” Thomas said, getting them back on track. “Now, you know why we are here; Roman and Virgil have been fighting for the last month, nearly every day. They seem to have some conflicts… personality wise. I think that they simply need to learn how to get along.” 

Logan nodded. “Yes, behavioral studies show that children going through problems at home are more prone to lash out at their peers. Perhaps-” 

“Logan.” Valerie interrupted, a slight warning in her voice. 

“My apologies. Continue.” Logan said. 

“Well, I’ve been thinking on it all day, and maybe them having a playdate outside of school may help. Roman won’t be trying to impress the other students, and Virgil won’t have to worry about the other kids. What are your thoughts?” Thomas looked between the three of them. 

Logan adjusted his glasses. “Yes, I think that a ‘playdate’ outside of the social setting may be more beneficial to the two learning to communicate and work together much more efficiently, but it would probably be better to have it in some open area, like a park or playground, so that should a conflict arise, they will have the space needed to calm down. I think it’s a fantastic idea for them to settle their differences.” 

Patton nodded, “Oh, it’ll be so much fun! Playdate at the park! We could go tomorrow, since it’s the weekend.”

“I have to leave tomorrow morning for my business trip, so Logan, you can handle this, right?” Valerie said, not really a question as it was a command. 

Logan jumped a little, “Me?” 

“Oh, don’t worry, I’ll be there to help!” Patton said enthusiastically. 

Logan seemed a little soothed by that, eventually nodding in agreement. “Okay, then Vinewood Park at… noon?” 

“Sounds like a plan, Stan!” Patton said, pointing his finger at Logan. 

“My name is Logan,” he said in confusion. 

“It was a joke- ah, nevermind.” Patton said, turning back to Thomas, a little embarrassed. 

“Alright, well, tell me how it goes, and hopefully that may be enough to work things out. I know that they are both going through a lot right now, I just want them both to be happy,” Thomas said with a soft smile. 

Patton looked back at Virgil, who seemed like he was off in another world, but not in a good way. He nodded in agreement. 

 

Virgil was quiet on the way home, even more so than usual. 

“Come on, kiddo, why are you sulking back there?” Patton prompted softly. 

“Dad, we don’t really have to go tomorrow, do we? I don’t want to have a playdate with Roman, he doesn’t like me. He never has...” Virgil said, looking hopefully at Patton. 

“Sorry, kiddo, we have to. Maybe you can talk to him, ask him why he feels that way. Maybe you could even make friends with him!” Patton said happily. 

Virgil crossed his arms, pouting. “I don’t want to be friends with him…” 

As they parked in the driveway and got out of the car, Virgil made a point not to look at him. After Patton unlocked the front door, Virgil pushed past him and headed straight for his room. Patton tried not to feel hurt as the door slammed. He sighed, going to the living room and plopping himself down onto the couch. He stared at the ceiling for a moment, trying to figure out what to do. 

He looked up at the mantle above the fireplace, up at the old pictures he’d put there. They’d put there. He slowly got up and walked over to them. His eyes immediately fell to his favorite one. The last one they all took together. He picked it up, stroking his glass with his finger gently. 

Ellie always knew what to do. She had been the one that really knew how to take care of anything and everything, while Patton was clueless. He looked at Virgil in the picture, his arms wrapped around her, the biggest smile on his face. In the two years since she’d gone, Patton hadn’t seen him smile like that. It had taken him months to even get Virgil to say anything, and even longer to get him to open back up to him a little. 

Patton put the picture back, looking away, blinking away the tears forming in his eyes. He couldn’t cry. He needed to stay strong, to stay happy for Virgil. He just wished he knew what to do. 

A shuffling behind him made him snap out of it, and he turned around to see Virgil standing there, looking at the floor. 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to slam the door…” Virgil said softly, ashamed. 

Patton smiled, blinking again to make the wetness go away. “It’s okay, thank you for apologizing. Do you want to watch a movie?” 

Virgil perked up at that, running to the couch. “Nightmare before Christmas!”

Patton laughed, knowing that they’d be watching this again and again. It was only a few weeks ‘til Halloween, after all. As they settled down to watch it, Virgil snuggled up against Patton, and Patton stroked his back absentmindedly. 

Maybe he was doing something right. 


	2. Chapter 2

Logan was about to start banging his head on the car door. 

“Roman, please, just get in the car,” he pleaded to the 10-year-old currently laying on the sidewalk outside his apartment. 

“NO!” Roman shouted, sticking his tongue out at him. “I don’t wanna go!” 

Logan pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling his temper rise. 

“Roman, get in the car. We are already going to be late to meet them,” Logan commanded. 

Roman remained where he was, crossing his arms with an angry pout. Logan had had enough. He picked Roman up, wrestling him into the car while Roman yelled, trying to wriggle out. He shut the door quickly and ignored Roman’s attempt to open the child-locked door. 

The ride was cold and silent as Roman stared out the window angrily. Logan just paid attention to the road, ready for this to all be over. Dealing with Roman was certainly not his strong suit. Valerie was the one who understood all his “daydreams” and such. All Logan could do was handle things logically… something that Roman didn’t understand or care about. Simply put, they didn’t get along very well. 

As they pulled into the parking lot, Logan gave himself a moment to breath before he shut off the car and got out. He opened the door, and like he suspected, Roman sat there with his arms crossed, huffing. 

“Come on,” Logan said, already feeling drained. 

No response. Logan put his hands in front of his face as if praying, taking a deep breath. 

“Roman,” he said warningly. “Get out of the car right now.” 

Roman shook his head furiously. 

Logan looked around the park, to find… Patton, he believed his name was, walking over. 

“Hey! Fancy meeting you here!” Patton joked. 

“Yes. Unfortunately, Roman is being a little… difficult.” Logan said, a little more sharply than he intended to. Roman reaffirmed this by huffing away. 

“Aw, well that’s no fun…” Patton said. He gently pushed past Logan to face Roman. “Hi, kiddo, I’m Virgil’s dad, my name is Patton!” 

Roman looked at the stranger with a little interest. 

“I don’t want to make you play with Virgil if you don’t want to, but will you at least play with me? What’s your favorite game?” Patton asked brightly. 

Roman perked up, “Knights and Dragons!” 

Logan almost felt like he had whiplash from the sudden change in Roman’s demeanor. He stared at Patton, whose bright smile was blinding him. 

“Well, Sir Roman, would you like to be a hero and slay the mighty dragon?” Patton asked, wiggling his fingers at him. 

Roman unbuckled, jumping out of the car. “Do I have to save Virgil from the knight?” 

Patton nodded. “Or else… I’ll get him!” 

Patton ran off to the swingsets, where Virgil was sitting, Roman on his heels. Logan just stared dumbfoundedly after them, trying to process what just happened. Roman picked up a stick and pretended it was a sword, waving it around while yelling that he was going to save Virgil. Patton was pretending to be a dragon trying to steal Virgil, and all of them were smiling. 

How did he do that? 

Patton looked up at him, waving him over. Logan shook his head, realizing that he was still just standing next to the open car door. He shut it and walked over to the other three. 

“Come on, Logan, be a dragon!” Patton shouted excitedly. 

“What? No.” Logan said, shaking his head quickly. 

Roman stopped in front of him, looking up pleadingly. “Come on, dad, please?” 

“Well…” Logan couldn’t really say no to that look, even if he was going to make a fool of himself. “Alright, I guess… What do I do?” 

“Just run around, the kids will chase us,” Patton explained before running away, stealing Virgil off the swing. 

Roman picked up another stick off the ground and ran to them, making Patton stop in his tracks before handing it to Virgil. 

“Here is your own sword. We’ll both have to fight now that there’s two dragons!” Roman said before lightly hitting Patton’s shoulder. 

Virgil followed suit, giggling as Patton dropped him and acted wounded. Patton retreated, running past Logan, who was still standing there awkwardly. Roman started running to Logan, and Logan had never been more scared for his life. He ran, following Patton, like his life depended on it. Logically, he knew that he would be fine even if Roman caught up to him. But something about a ten-year-old boy running at him whilst waving a stick around defied all logic. 

Patton had circled back around, and Roman tricked him out, managing to catch up to him. Patton let himself be hit by the two, falling to the ground dramatically. 

“You aren’t really dying; you are just going to get dirty by rolling on the ground,” Logan assessed.

Patton shushed him. “Just play along!” 

He pretended to die, and as Roman cheered in victory at the “slain dragon”, Virgil checked to make sure his dad was okay. Patton nodded, giving him a small thumbs up, and Virgil joined in the cheers. 

“Now to slay the other dragon!” Roman yelled. 

Logan realized he was talking about him. As he ran, the two boys chased him. After a few moments of the chase, they realized that they outnumbered him, and split up. While he was impressed with their problem solving skills, he was about to be caught by them on either side of him. They closed in, and Roman managed to tackle him. Logan stumbled, and they soon had bested him, cheering and high-fiving as Logan lay on the ground, also slain. 

“Let’s see who can swing the highest!” Roman shouted, racing to the swingset with Virgil running behind him. 

Logan started sitting up, finding a hand in front of his face. He looked up to see Patton’s bright smile. He took his hand and helped himself up, feeling some sort of funny feeling in his stomach. Maybe he’d eaten something weird. He ignored it as he stood up straighter, straightening his tie. 

“Well, looks like they have things figured out,” Patton said, watching the two children swing. “We can take a break, if you’d like.” 

“That would be ideal, yes.” Logan said, following Patton to a bench.

They sat on the bench, watching the kids for a moment. Patton turned to look at Logan, and Logan looked back. 

“So, Valerie said she had a business trip, right? What does she do?” Patton asked. 

“Ah,” Logan said, adjusting his glasses. “She started her own business making clothes, and she flies out to different cities often to promote her line and make deals with potential clients. Those are the times that Roman is left with me, which certainly isn’t his favorite thing. He says my apartment is too small.” 

Patton gave him a quizzical look, “Your apartment?” 

Logan nodded, “Yes, me and Valerie… split… a few months ago, so I am now living on my own.” 

Patton’s eyes widened, “Oh… I’m sorry, I didn’t realize…” 

“It’s fine,” Logan said as he shook his head. “Neither one of us were very happy, so… it’s just what happened.” 

There was a moment of silence, and Logan cleared his throat awkwardly. 

“So, uh… What about Virgil’s mom? Is she out of town or something? I noticed she wasn’t at the meeting yesterday,” Logan inquired, trying to keep the conversation going. 

Patton didn’t say anything, and Logan noticed his gaze turn downward. He started to worry he’d said the wrong thing. 

“She… well… She actually passed away two years ago.” Patton said, his usual smile turned sad. 

“Oh… I’m- I’m sorry for your loss…” 

Patton nodded. “It was a sudden bacterial infection that we just thought was the flu, until it didn’t go away in a few days, and only got worse. She went to the hospital, but nothing they did helped. She was gone a few days later…” He sighed, looking back up at the kids swinging. “It was really hard for Virgil, he shut himself down after that, and it’s been hard trying to get him to open back up… I’m glad he had fun today.” 

Logan stared at this man, who had seemed so happy-go-lucky, like nothing had ever bothered him in his life, who, even while telling him that terrible thing, still managed to keep a smile on his face. There was suddenly a strength in him that he hadn’t seen before, but also a certain softness.

Patton looked back at him, and Logan felt his heart beat faster as their eyes met. Patton’s hand reached for him, and Logan froze as Patton picked something out of his hair. 

“You had a leaf,” Patton said with a soft smile, showing him the culprit. 

“Oh… T-thanks.” Logan stammered, feeling that weird feeling in his stomach again. It was certainly uncharacteristic of him. 

“No problem… although… I think that I may certainly deserve a Patt-on the back for spotting it!” Patton said, grinning widely. 

Logan was confused for a moment, before the wordplay hit him. He groaned, rolling his eyes at him. It was a little hard to keep the smile off his face though. 

He looked back at the kids, watching as Roman laughed. It wasn’t often that Logan saw him smile, even though both Valerie and Thomas say that he’s a happy kid. But of course, it’s his own fault. He just can’t understand Roman, and while he can tell anyone the list of foods best for a child, or the best ways of making sure they are doing well in their studies, he just doesn’t get how to… actually take care of him. Roman hates him, and he knows it. 

“Logan? You okay, buddy?” Patton asked, snapping him out of it. 

Logan realized that he was clenching his jaw, and he loosened it, shaking his head a little. 

“Yeah, I just… It’s not often that I see Roman smile. We are always butting heads; he sees the world like his mother does, and we have very different views on just about everything… However, he did inherit my, admittedly, very stubborn nature. So we fight all the time, and I’ve proven to be a terrible father who can’t understand his son…” Logan said, his tone growing dark. 

Patton didn’t say anything for a moment, looking like he was thinking as he drummed his fingers against his chin, looking back at the kids. Suddenly, he jumped, turning back to Logan. 

“Why don’t you have a playdate with Roman?” he suggested. 

“A… playdate?” Logan asked slowly. 

Patton nodded vigorously. “Yeah, just look at how you two were earlier! Roman was so happy that you were playing! Maybe that’s all he really needs, just for you to play along.”

“Well…” Logan thought for a moment. “I guess we both just kind of… do our own “thing” when we are together.” 

“Do you know what his favorite movie is? Or game? Or story?” Patton questioned. 

Logan blanked, shaking his head. 

“Well then that’s also part of the problem! Find out his favorite movie, and watch it with him, then you have something to talk about. You can play his favorite game, and you can tell his favorite story. Maybe he just wants you to understand his interests more. Then maybe he’ll also be more open to learning about yours.” 

Logan blinked. 

Patton smiled. “Whenever Virgil is feeling down, I always offer to watch a Disney movie with him, cause they are his favorite.” 

“Oh!” Logan said, perking up. “Roman likes Disney, I think. He has a lot of memorabilia from their movies and is constantly singing the songs.” 

“Perfect! Then ask Roman what his favorite is, and watch it with him. Then you can talk to him about it and understand the references he makes from it.” Patton said. 

Logan thought for a moment. “I suppose it does make sense, logically, that if we have a shared topic of interest, that our bond would grow stronger. The role in media plays a rather large part in the socialization of children and adolescents, so if I also understand the media, then I will be able to communicate more effectively with younger people, such as Roman.” 

Patton giggled, “Did you get that from a scholarly article?” 

Logan shrunk a little, ducking his head. “Maybe… I had hoped by looking at behavioral studies in children, that I could understand it better.” 

Patton smiled at him. “You know, you don’t have to follow that stuff to understand him. He’s just a kid. It doesn’t have to be about logic, sometimes you just have to follow your heart. Just have fun and roll with life.” 

“Hm…” Logan hummed. He couldn’t really understand that point of view. Really, who was he without his knowledge and his planning? It was easier to just conceptualize. 

 

As Logan drove home, Roman fell asleep in the back, exhausted from running and playing all day. 

When they parked, Roman stirred slightly. Logan opened the door, and Roman blinked at him sleepily. 

“Dad? Can we have another playdate with Virgil? I changed my mind, I like him.” Roman asked as Logan unbuckled him. 

Logan smiled, a little surprised. “Yes, of course. We’ll have to talk to Patton about it, but I’m sure we can figure something out.” 

Roman smiled, getting out of the car and going to the apartment door. Logan couldn’t help but smile, feeling almost… normal, for once. Maybe Patton was just a good influence on him. It seemed like he would certainly be seeing him again. 


End file.
